page_title: Nativity scene
section_title: Animals in nativity scenes
hierarchical_section_title: Nativity scene / Components / Animals in nativity scenes
caption_attribution_description: English: Christmas crib parish Church St. James in Ebing Deutsch: Weihnachtskrippe in der katholische Pfarrkirche Sankt Jakobus in Ebing
context_page_description: In the Christian tradition, a nativity scene is the special exhibition, particularly during the Christmas season, of art objects representing the birth of Jesus. While the term "nativity scene" may be used of any representation of the very common subject of the Nativity of Jesus in art, it has a more specialized sense referring to seasonal displays, either using model figures in a setting or reenactments called "living nativity scenes" in which real humans and animals participate. Nativity scenes exhibit figures representing the infant Jesus, his mother, Mary, and her husband, Joseph.
  Other characters from the nativity story, such as shepherds, sheep, and angels may be displayed near the manger in a barn intended to accommodate farm animals, as described in the Gospel of Luke. A donkey and an ox are typically depicted in the scene, and the Magi and their camels, described in the Gospel of Matthew, are also included. Several cultures add other characters and objects that may or may not be Biblical.
  Saint Francis of Assisi
  is credited with creating the first live nativity scene in 1223 in order to cultivate the worship of Christ.
context_section_description: A donkey (or ass) and an ox typically appear in nativity scenes. Besides the necessity of animals for a manger, this is an allusion to the Book of Isaiah: "the ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib; but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider" Isaiah 1:3. The Gospels do not mention an ox and donkey Another source for the tradition may be the extracanonical text, the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew of the 7th century. (The translation in this text of Habakkuk 3:2 is not taken from the Septuagint.):
  "And on the third day after the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, Mary went out of the cave, and, entering a stable, placed the child in a manger, and an ox and an ass adored him. Then was fulfilled that which was said by the prophet Isaiah, "The ox knows his owner, and the ass his master's crib." Therefore, the animals, the ox and the ass, with him in their midst incessantly adored him. Then was fulfilled that which was said by Habakkuk the prophet, saying, "Between two animals you are made manifest."
  The ox traditionally represents patience, the nation of Israel, and Old Testament sacrificial worship while the ass represents humility, readiness to serve, and the Gentiles.
  The ox and the ass, as well as other animals, became a part of nativity scene tradition. In a 1415, Corpus Christi celebration, the Ordo paginarum notes that Jesus was lying between an ox and an ass. Other animals introduced to nativity scenes include elephants and camels.
  By the 1970s, churches and community organizations increasingly included animals in nativity pageants. Since then, automobile-accessible "drive-through" scenes with sheep and donkeys have become popular.
caption: Christmas crib parish Church St. James in Ebing, Germany
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